Can Newt Gingrich Beat Barack Obama? >
Newt Gingrich Has a Record That Beats Barack Obama's Handily
History shows that 2012 will be a great year for Republicans
December 6, 2011
Perhaps the question should be how could former Speaker Newt Gingrich not beat President Obama? 2012 is going to be a great year for Republicans. Probably the only way Republicans do not win is if the GOP nominates former Gov. Mitt Romney or Rep. Ron Paul.
Newt is in the enviable position of having a good record to run on against a really bad Obama record and an environment that in many ways is a repeat of 1980.
When the Democrats took control of Congress in 2007, unemployment was at 4.6 percent. The economy had grown new jobs for 52 straight months. When George W. Bush left office gas was half the price it is now.
[See a slide show of Newt Gingrich's career]
Obama's polling numbers are in the low 40s now. Those numbers are eerily close to Jimmy Carter's approval numbers in 1980 and we know how that election ended.
As we go into 2012, the numbers look even worse for Obama. The only reason the unemployment numbers went down recently was that 300,000 Americans gave up looking for work. By next fall, experts are predicting we will once again have $4 a gallon gas.
Newt brings two amazing strengths to the election, which helps him incredibly. First, he is a brilliant field general. He understands history and how things work. He was the man who thought big and believed that the GOP could take a majority in the House of Representatives in the '90s.
[See a collection of political cartoons on the economy.]
His second strength is his amazing skill as a debater. When his campaign staff left him in May to go to Gov. Rick Perry's campaign, Newt's debate performance kept his candidacy alive.
Newt is a man of learning and of great vision. Not only does he know history, he has been part of a historical change in Washington. When Newt compares his record of balancing the budget in the '90s and welfare reform against Obama's record of unemployment, economic mismanagement, and corruption, Newt will not only be able to win, he will defeat Obama handily.
- See photos of the 2012 GOP candidates.
- See a collection of political cartoons on the GOP hopefuls.
- Read about how Newt Gingrich can make his surge last.
- Other Arguments
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#19165
No — Newt Gingrich lacks the credibility to peel voters away from Obama
ALICIA MENENDEZ, Senior Adviser at NDN
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#26759
No — A Newt Gingrich GOP nomination is Obama's best hope for 2012
LARA BROWN, Professor at Villanova University
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#36558
No — Though he might get the GOP nomination, the general electorate will not tolerate Gingrich's hypocrisy
KRYSTAL BALL, Former Democratic Nominee for Congress
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#46256
Yes — Obama is vulnerable, but Gingrich will have to present a new vision for America to win
DOUGLAS SCHOEN, Democratic Campaign Consultant
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#65060
No — Republicans are doomed to make the same mistakes the Democrats made in 2004
JAMAL SIMMONS, Principal at The Raben Group
